My mother wants to eat all the time. Anyone else experience weight loss in elderly family members even though they eat regularly?

If you want to get weight on her let her eat anything that she wants to eat.
If all she wants in Ensure or other liquid meal supplement let her have it.
You can take any food that you would normally eat and puree it and she can drink that if she is having problems with solid foods.
Hospice is for End Of Life / Comfort or choosing to no longer seek curative solutions. If you are making appointments for Cardiologists and other specialists then you are not at the point of accepting End of Life / Comfort Care for mom.

At 85 years old and with dementia per your profile I’m not sure why you’d be worried about sugar and Ensure? I’d let her eat all she wants of whatever she wants. Dramatic weight loss often points to an unknown condition that’s causing havoc and needs to be determined or a person unable to process food for nutrition any longer.

My mom was diagnosed with heart failure and cachexia 5 months ago. The MD didn’t explain anything about the cachexia, I found the diagnosis in her hospital records, and all I know about it is what I’ve been able to google online. It is roughly synonymous with “wasting” and inability to absorb nutrients, often causing/caused by heart failure or cancer. Not universally progressive, I’m told by a friend-of-the-family internist. But while Mom’s been eating fairly well for the past 6 months, she hasn’t gained any weight. She seems stable on the cardiac front now, but especially with edema fully resolved, looks so frail and cachetic. I don’t expect her to have more than months. She’s also 90.

It’s rough when hospice doesn’t seem to do enough. Best of luck, hope you keep us posted.

As a newly retired Nutrition {degree} clinical staff member of 27 yrs for a nursing home …yes.. weight loss can happen with many medical conditions despite good food intakes ie: Copd, Lewy Body Dementia. When a person is advanced elderly it is best to not worry about the sugar intake. Weight loss is a predictor of increased death risk. My advice was try Ensure {Glucerna if a diabetic}, even home made milkshakes with whole milk. Maintaining the persons weight outweighs the risk of sugar etc. Regular diets are recommended…no restrictions. Meds can be used to control medical conditions at this age. Good Luck

Try getting her weight up anyway you can.
I even had my Dad's Dr tell me that they would make a weekly batch of brownies for his father to put on extra weight.
Ir's better to have the sugar than the weight loss.

For my 97 yr old Dad, I give soft food easier for him to digest.
Apple sauce, Yogurt, Banana slices, Avocado mashed and mixed with a little applesauce Sweet Potatoes and Yes Blue Bell Ice Cream too!
He loves Peanut Butter Ritz Crackers.

As people get older, they lose their taste buds but can taste sweet sugar.

Also, you really should include Ensure or any of the others brands as they have good Protein.

Weight loss, eating everything, yes, and I have no dementia. I am a Caregiver. When I began taking care of Mom, she was on 13mg of high blood pressure meds, and too much blood thinners. Talk with her doctor (I have her MPOA at 94) removed blood thinners, and all but 2.5 HB meds. Started her on real salt with iodine. Vitamins, E, L-lysine, ck google. Fix foods she wanted but not too much of any one thing. And made the plate as colorful as I could. Purple beets, red strawberries. You get the picture. She began to have entergy. And gained weight a little at a time. We began to play computer games on her tablet. I learned one thing, I treated her like she was living, not dieing. She died 4 months later. Your Mom or Dad is your family, sit down and eat as a family, kitchen l, bedroom, livingroom you determine what is best.

Yes - and I would put her back on the ensure which is balanced in nutrients with the sugar to provide the calories. I don't know why you think hospice isn't real medical help - personally I would go with what those who look after many elderly people recommend and not put my own ideas of what elderly should eat above their experience. To be honest unless she is diabetic and Dr disagrees what does it matter if she is getting a lot of sugar.

My Dad is losing weight - was 198 in March and 176 today at doc. He had a brain bleed (stroke) in March and heart attack in 2007. He is 85. I did a little research. Following a stroke pre-albumin levels could show issue. I looked at his bloodwork, his albumin is low. Doc says may not be absorbing protein and will need more tests to see what is going on. I hope this helps - it's in the vascular realm. Good luck - I need it too.

I do let her eat anything and anytime she wants. Why are you talking about pureeing foods? Not at all a problem I am facing. I know what the purpose of Hospice is. Did you even read the question I had? Seems not.

Vjg6727: Imho, perhaps she should be seen quite soon by her specialist as to why she is losing weight.